Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Wadada Leo Smith & John Lindberg: Celestial Weather (2015)

Two modern avant-garde icons and long-time collaborators with an age-old link to Anthony Braxton's
Creative Orchestra, come together for three suites that capitalize on
their ability to forge a soundscape that is fuller than the duo format
would logically produce. Celestial Weather is an open discourse
between two musicians who have mastered their respective instruments to
the point of literally giving them an emotive voice of their own.

Lindberg, in recent years, has been an integral part of Smith's Ten Freedom Summers (Cuneiform, 2012) and Occupy the World (TUM Records, 2013) and The Great Lakes Suites (TUM Records, 2014) projects; the first two being larger-scale, powerful works of extensive depth and scope. Celestial Weather, in contrast, is a work where every response is exposed between the two players and the intricacy takes on a life of its own.

Smith's two-part composition, "Malachi Favors Maghostut," dedicated to the AACM bassist Malachi Favors
features harmonic fragments rather than an established melody.
Suspending preconceived notions of composition is—as frequently is the
case with both Smith and Lindberg—a preferable option. The five-part
"Celestial Weather Suite," is the second suite and was completely
improvised in the recording studio. It is the final movement, "Tornado,"
where the duo comes closest to a sustained melody.

Lindberg is
credited with the final suite, the two-part "Feathers and Earth."
Though largely improvised, Lindberg's life experience with the full
range of formations from solo to chamber ensembles all finds a home in
this section of the album. It goes without saying that both Smith and
Lindberg exhibit incredible virtuosity, pushing their instruments beyond
the pale without demonstrating the need to impress. Celestial Weather
can be a bit overwhelming in terms of what it demands from the
listener, but a willingness to let the creative process wash over the
need to analyze is the recommended approach to this inventive album.